The latest exercise in chronic nationalism, or a statue for a terrorist?

In the words of the song from the musical "Gigi" sung by Maurice Chevalier (a Frenchman who was very popular in the US - an interesting example in itself) "I'm glad I'm not young any more".

We have economic problems in Europe which threaten to throttle an entire generation, and all we seem to get are chronic nationalistic solutions (see the UK, France, Hungary usw) ..... and historical revisionism.

So let us throw out the name "Gavrilo Princip".

You don't know the name?

You ought to. His action, on behalf of the "Black Hand" - the movement which he supported - set in motion the train of events which led, several weeks later, to the start of World War I (also known as the Great War).

Rather than presenting my own limited summary of events, let me offer you the following link for a clear analysis of everything involved with Princip and the Black hand movement:

http://spartacus-educational.com/FWWprincip.htm

Essentially a small-town nobody who supported a fanatical cause which generated a sequence of events which led to millions being killed and changed the face of Europe forever ..... 

From small acorns .....

Note the comment about Princip and his collaborators in the mission: 

Princip, Nedjelko Cabrinovic and Trifko Grabez were suffering from tuberculosis and knew they would not live long. They were therefore willing to give their life for what they believed was a great cause .....

A sort of precursor of the suicide bomber. The cause is greater than I am, and as I am going to die anyway ....

Wahnsinn!

In 3 weeks time there will be the 100th anniversary of this event. I would not have thought that there was much reason to celebrate the Great War and everything that was involved. The mass slaughter on a grand scale, the diplomatic intransigence, the military insistence upon victory no matter what the cost, and the cost in the short and long-term!

Well apparently some people in Serbia (and the Serb enclave in Bosnia) think otherwise. Apparently statues in his honour are to be built in both Belgrade and the Serb part of Sarajevo. See:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/06/gavrilo-princip-hero-villain-first-world-war-balkan-history

About the one thing that we learn from history is that apparently we learn nothing. Wharrever you think of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (100 years later), European monarchies in general (and remember I am a committed democratic republican who wants to see the (peaceful) end of inherited rule of any kind) usw, turning the likes of Princip into a hero and freedom fighter is definitely "convenient history" at its best. 

Unfortunately it is a common trait among fanatics (be they nationalists, religious fanatics, radical communist movements usw). 

You would think in these difficult economic times that there were better things to do than build statues for the political assassins of 100 years ago, wharrever the cause they supported.

To note: in the next couple of weeks I will be writing a piece on who was responsible for starting the First World War - seen as a response to a British "quality" newspaper which should be capable of making a thorough analysis and not merely producing a knee-jerk repetition of 100-year-old propaganda.